The Inside Story Podcast What are the risks for Israel opening another battlefront, in Iran?
Mar 2, 2026
Alon Pinkas, former Israeli ambassador in New York, offers a diplomatic lens. Rami Khouri, Middle East analyst, brings regional and historical perspective. Mitchell Barak, Israeli security strategist, explains military and political calculations. They discuss Israel's wider regional campaign, the debate over regime change versus nuclear aims, risks of opening another front, and potential political and strategic fallout.
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Israel's Goals Go Beyond Nuclear Rollback
- The publicly stated aim of the US and Israel is to eliminate Iran's nuclear and missile capabilities.
- Rami Khouri adds a deeper motive: Israel seeks strategic regional dominance across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Palestine, tied to a rising right-wing messianic trend.
Regime Change Is The Apparent Objective But Unlikely
- Alon Pinkas argues the current campaign reads as regime-change driven rather than purely nuclear containment.
- He notes modern air strikes alone historically cannot reliably produce regime change except in extreme cases like 1945 Japan.
Air Power Alone Rarely Topples Governments
- Alon Pinkas emphasizes there's no clear historical precedent for air strikes alone causing regime collapse except under imminent invasion threat.
- He uses the 1945 Japan example to stress limits of purely military pressure.